Respirology : official journal of the Asian Pacific Society of Respirology
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Multicenter Study
Bosentan therapy in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension: the relationship between improvements in 6 minute walk distance and quality of life.
Bosentan, an oral, dual endothelin receptor antagonist, significantly improves functional status, haemodynamic measures and survival in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). However, there are limited data on the effect of bosentan on quality of life (QOL) and its relationship to changes in functional status, as measured by the 6 minute walk distance (6MWD). ⋯ Bosentan therapy was associated with improvements in QOL and 6MWD for at least 6 months. At all measured time points, there was a close correlation between 6MWD and most QOL domains. QOL is an important parameter and should be considered as part of the standard assessment for any trial investigating therapy in PAH.
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Case Reports
Spontaneous pneumomediastinum due to gastroesophageal reflux disease in an adolescent boy.
The presence of free air in the mediastinum, without traumatic injury or underlying disease, is known as spontaneous pneumomediastinum. The diagnosis is based on CXR and CT scan. Oesophagography is essential for the exclusion of oesophageal rupture. We present a case of pneumomediastinum in a 17-year-old boy with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and emphasize that the association of pneumomediastinum and symptoms of GERD warrants oesophageal pH monitoring.
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This report describes a patient with malignant pleural mesothelioma who presented with a right-sided pleural effusion and contralateral parenchymal metastases manifesting as alveolar opacities with air bronchograms. This radiological pattern of metastases has never been described before. The patient died from respiratory failure related to extensive parenchymal metastases, an outcome seldom reported with malignant pleural mesothelioma.
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Reactive oxygen species (ROS) play an important role in the pathogenesis of acute lung injury (ALI) and pulmonary fibrosis. It was hypothesized that edaravone, a free radical scavenger, would be able to attenuate LPS-induced lung injury in mice by decreasing oxidative stress. ⋯ In an experimental murine model, a free radical scavenger may prevent ALI via repression of pro-inflammatory cytokine production by lung macrophages.